


Wizard in Winter

by Uniasus



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-08
Updated: 2017-01-08
Packaged: 2018-09-15 21:03:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9257171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Uniasus/pseuds/Uniasus
Summary: It's tradition for Camelot U's Evergreen St to host a block party the day before holiday break starts. Lance thought their house decorating was done, but then Morgana upped the ante and his housemates took up the challenge.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is a very, very late addition to the [Merlin Carols challenge.](http://merlincarols.livejournal.com/). My song prompt was, obviously, Wizards in Winter by the Tran-Siberian Orchestra, but it went in a slightly different direction thanks to Gwaine. More like..."Making Christmas" from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Either way, enjoy!

“What’s going on?”

Merlin looked over his shoulder to see Lance stumbling up the sidewalk, mint green scrubs peeking out between his trainers and his pea coat.

“What’s it look like?”

“Putting up Christmas decorations.”

“That’s exactly what’s going on.”

“Merlin.”

With a sigh, Merlin handed over his thermos. Lance took a swallow of the coffee and grimaced at the bitterness. Merlin always preferred it black. Good black coffee, as Arthur made sure the cabinets were filled with the best, but still black.

Lance cupped his bare hands around the thermos, thankful for the touch of warmth.

“We put up those nets just a few days ago on the bushes.”

“It was, to quote Gwaine, ‘not enough’.”

“Not enough?” Lance’s eyebrows raised, even as he took another sip. “We have two bushes and used five nets of lights. You can’t even see the branches.”

As a response, Merlin jerked his thumb down the street.

“They put up a whole display and Gwaine felt challenged. As did Arthur.”

Lance nodded. Camelot U’s Evergreen St had a reputation to uphold – a block party the day before holiday break. It wasn’t required to put up lights, though most did. Booze, apps, and music were really what distinguished the houses. But the Hen House, the largest on the block and as the name suggested filled with women, housed Morgana Pendragon.

Morgana, who unlike her half-brother Arthur, loved to spend their father’s money.

“Is that a train track circling the lawn?” Lance stared. The lights weren’t on, too early in the day, but he could vaguely make out bulbs hanging from the eves, as well as the train on the lawn. Small things in front most likely to be projectors, and what looked like a family of deer being overseen by a Santa Shepherd in the center of the circular tracks.

“The train works,” Merlin said. “Last night it circled to a loop of Peppermint Engineer, but then I think they annoyed themselves and changed it. My guess, Morgause picked the songs."

"What makes you say that?"

"Gwen wouldn't pick Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."

"Whoa!"

They snapped their attention to their own house, where Elyan wobbled as he stretched too far to staple a string of multi-colored lights to the eaves. Merlin snagged his thermos back quickly, bringing it up for a sip. Except by the way his eyes flashed gold, Lance knew the thermos was simply a prop to hide his magic.

Elyan stabilized, feet glued to the ladder as his spare hand stuck to the gutter.

“Alright there, Elyan?” Leon called from where he anchored the ladder.

“All good, but I think it’s time to move the ladder over.”

Only once the black man reached the fourth rung down did Merlin and Lance take a breath.

“Why aren’t you helping?” Lance asked.

In answer, Merlin waved his right arm. Covered by his coat, Lance had forgotten the brace. “I just got the cast removed two days ago, Arthur insisted I not help put things up.” He huffed, but didn’t seem bothered by the lack of work.

“He’s still feels a little guilty.”

“It was my idea to push him out of the way of that car. He has nothing to feel guilty about.”

“And yet, you like the pampering.”

“I wouldn’t call it pampering. But yes, Arthur juggling my chores around the rest of you is pretty nice.”

“You don’t use your hands anyway.”

“Do too!” Merlin turned to give Lance a hurt look. “You never know when I’ll be interpreted doing the dishes. I only use magic in rare cases.”

“By which you mean when you’re home alone or locked in your room.”

“It’s safer that way. No one is at risk of finding out then.”

“You do realize the house thinks you just like to wank a lot.”

Merlin gaped at him like a fish.

“Oi! Merlin!” Merlin and Lance zoomed in on Gwaine leaning out a second story window. “How’s this look?”

“Can you put it on something?” Merlin shouted back. “Maybe my law book? That class was last semester.”

“Gotcha!”

“What is that?” Lance stared in horror at the doll Gwaine propped up.

“Ah.” Merlin took an actual sip of coffee. “See, as we’re on a budget, they all went to Oxfam this morning. Gwaine found this old set of light up, animatronic dolls. And then Percival suggested they looked like horror movie props. And thus, our theme is born.”

“Christmas horror?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you even agree with that?”

Merlin coughed into his fist. “I didn’t. Overslept, and Arthur insisted they leave me be.”

“And they didn’t wait for me to get off shift, apparently.”

“You are back late.”

Lance stole the coffee again. “So we’re going with a creepy Christmas feel. That explains why Gwaine’s Mrs. Claus only has half a head of hair and a missing eye.”

“Wait till you see Santa. Leon painted a skeleton on that and then Percival found some way to pop out the eye sockets and put in lights.”

“You’re joking.”

“No. Watch for it.”

They stood on the sidewalk a bit longer. Elyan and Leon moved the ladder a meter over, Merlin making sure the latter didn’t trip over a cord. Gwaine set Mrs. Claus in Merlin’s window, then Santa Claus in Arthur’s, and, Lance suspected, changed the bathroom bulb to a red one judging by the glow. Arthur came out, dragging a blow up Grinch that got staked into the center of the yard.

Lance shook his head at it all. “I can’t believe our house looks like this.”

“Me neither.”

Both men jumped at the voice behind them, they hadn’t heard Gwen and Freya approach.

Lance blushed at being so close to Gwen. Merlin let the opportunity to tease him go by to kiss his girlfriend’s cheek. Freya leaned into the action, stepping between the men to slip her arm through Merlin’s healthy arm.

“What are they doing?” Gwen asked, coming around to stand on Merlin’s other side. Lance did his best to hide his disappointed frown by drinking the dregs of Merlin’s coffee. It also allowed him to stare at her cocoa skin unnoticed. Wasn't she cold? She should wear a coat.

“Christmas horror,” Merlin offered. “Gwaine and Arthur were intimidated by your ‘house all a-glow’.”

“And this is supposed to even the playing field?” Freya wrinkled her nose. “I thought Arthur at least would have better taste.”

“He does,” Merlin and Lance deadpanned.

“So…” Gwen trailed off.

“It’s all Gwaine’s idea, apparently,” Lance answered. It said a lot both women nodded in understanding.

“You do realize Morgana is going to die of laughter when she sees this,” Freya said.

“That might be the point,” Merlin mused, “Arthur’s secret plot to get her out of the way.”

All four watched for a moment as Arthur and Percival struggled with the blow up Grinch. Perce jumped back as if it shocked him, but a hesitant second touch proved it was a one off. Or rather, considering Lance caught Merlin hiding the golden glow of his eyes by nuzzling Freya, Merlin had just magiced all the electronics their house mates were setting up to be safe.

“Are you going to link it to music too?” Gwen asked.

“Of course,” Merlin said. Using magic, Lance suspected. “We have to pick one though. That’s the afternoon plan.”

“You’re so good with electronics and such, Merlin.” Gwen smiled at her friend. “I’m still surprised you didn’t go into engineering.”

Merlin shrugged. Even Lance wasn’t quite sure why Merlin seemed to have picked a career path were his magic wouldn’t be helpful even in tiny ways.

“Merlin, stopping talking to your girlfriend and tell us how it looks,” Arthur growled from the lawn.

“Yeah,” Gwaine added from the doorway, “They’re the competition.”

“It’s not actually a competition,” Elyan said, jumping off the ladder onto solid ground.

“You just haven’t known us long enough,” Leon answered. “To Gwaine, everything is openly a competition. To Arthur, it’s a secret one.”

Arthur sputtered and Lance had to snort in agreement.

“Merlin!” Arthur turned his attention back to them on the sidewalk. “How does it look?”

Lance, Freya, Gwen, and Merlin all took their time taking in the details. Elyan had stapled large white bulbs to the roof of the house, covered in plastic with ghost faces. (Lance tried not to think of the fire hazard that was.) Gwaine’s animatronic dolls stood out not just in the top floor bedroom windows, but in the living room ones too, each straight from a Chuckie movie. The inflatable Grinch loomed next to the sidewalk, where Leon had started driving in rather tame and appropriate plastic candy canes.

“I think we should turn it on first. It all set up?” Merlin turned to Perce, who nodded.

Lance watched as Merlin theatrically pulled a small, one button remote out of his pocket and brought it up to Freya’s mouth. “A blow for luck?”

Smiling, Freya pursed her lips and blew air on the plastic. Merlin kissed her cheek, the side opposite the house, Lance noticed, and then pulled back to press the button.

All the lights turned on, the red and green on the bushes giving the Grinch a sinister halo, even as the ghosts burned brightly in traditional Christmas fashion. Merlin’s button also turned on the orange lights around the 1st floor windows, making the set of angels stiffly moving there look recently cast down to hell to burn. Mr. and Mrs. Claus looked only marginally better, seeing as lights around those windows were soft and multi-colored.

The biggest surprise however was the projector on the house. Thousands of small red lights moved on the walls. Lance had seen the projectors cast on trees to mimic fairy lights. Now, they looked like blood splatters.

All four observers cringed, which seemed to make Gwaine happy even as Arthur and Percival started discussing improvements.

“I’m not sure I want to live on this street anymore,” Gwen said. “I can see your house from my bedroom window, and now I think I’ll have nightmares until the new term.”

Freya reached around Merlin to place a comforting hand on her arm.

“Can you save it?” Lance asked Merlin. Anything would do. The bulbs all exploding. The dolls catching on fire, or simply no longer working. The entire block having no power.

Merlin nodded, and Lancelot breathed out in relief.

“Merlin. Merlin!”

“What?” Merlin snapped at Arthur.

“What do you think?” Arthur waved a hand at the house. “Is it good?”

“You want it linked to music?”

“Yes.”

“Then I need more.”

“More?” Leon gasped, even as Gwaine cheered and Lance looked at Merlin in horror.

“More.” Merlin nodded. “Something on the front yard. Three-foot jack o lanterns, maybe? Or those spiral Christmas trees. Red, of course.”

“That’s it, I’m gone. I need to block this view. Coming, Freya?” Gwen patted Merlin’s arm and started to cross the street.

Freya gave Merlin a peck on the cheek, then hurried to catch up with her housemate.

Lance ignored to rest of the house talking about what they saw at Oxfam in terms of potential lawn ornaments to steal the remote from Merlin’s hands. Fiercely, he pressed the button to turn the house off.

“How is more stuff gonna fix it?”

“More stuff means more variety of combinations, and,” Merlin winced, “less time with them all on at once. I can magic a dance between the lawn ornaments and keep the dolls mostly dark. I’ll makes it work, promise.”

“I can’t believe I live with you all.”

“Be happy your room doesn’t face the street. You don’t have to sleep with a creepy doll for the next two weeks.”

Lance laughed, clapping Merlin on the back. “Come on, we have to go with them to make sure they don’t buy anything worse.”

Sighing, Merlin followed Lance into the

**Author's Note:**

> For those of you interested, as it was part of the reason this is so late, I put together a [playlist of the songs the Hen House uses for their display, ](http://8tracks.com/uniasus/witches-in-winter)including reasons for their picks. Make sure you read the annotations to get the full experience.  
> http://8tracks.com/uniasus/witches-in-winter


End file.
